Simply in Season Treats: Merlot Poached Pears a la Mode

Last night, I wanted to make a special treat. I had some bosch pears on hand that I had gotten at the farmer's market so I whipped up this merlot poached pear recipe and served it with some vanilla honey bee ice cream. It was so indulgent and lovely and added the perfect dose of glamour to a lazy friday night spent in watching a movie. I adapted this recipe from the French Women Don't Get Fat cookbook.

You will need:

• 2 bosch pears
• 1 cup merlot (shiraz or zinfandel also works)
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 2 tbsp lemon juice
• 1/2 tsp cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp nutmeg
• vanilla ice cream (to serve)

Peel and core the pears. Cut to desired size. I like to do wedges or chunks to make it easy, but you can slice the pears or even keep them whole for a pretty presentation.

In a small saucepan, combine the wine, sugar, lemon juice, cinnamon and nutmeg and bring to a boil. Add the pears. Cook for about 15 to 20 minutes until the pears are cooked through.

Remove the pears and boil the remaining liquid until reduced into a syrup. Once the pears have cooled, serve with a scoop of ice cream and the syrup.

As you can tell from my pictures, I didn't really have the patience to let the pears cool completely because someone was already whining for dessert. Keeping them slightly warm let the ice cream melt into the flavors, and ooh-wee was it delightful.

I warn you, though, the richness is quite incredible on the senses and makes it quite the sexy dessert. Wine, cinnamon, mmmm. Definitely a date night treat to remember. :) Has anyone seen that Sarah Michelle Gellar movie Simply Irresistible? That's what this reminds me of. Except, of course, my recipe is not infused with magic. Wouldn't that be something?